By Chris Miller, Assistant Editor, Facility Market

The $2 billion U.S Veterans Affairs medical complex in Aurora, Colorado, is one of the most expensive healthcare facilities in the world, according to the Denver Post. The 11-building, 1.2 million-square-foot, 31-acre health center is the most expensive VA health center in the country. The only health center more costly than this one in the world is the $2.4 billion Royal Adelaide Hospital in Australia.

This construction project took a while to finish, opening a decade behind schedule. This was partly due to a handful of malfunctioning, poorly installed or missing items dealt with throughout the process. These issues were compounded by failed sewers, downspouts spewing hazardous liquid, improper fire doors, and sidewalks without handicap-accessible curbing.

The new Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center is twice the size of the other VA medical campus in downtown Denver. Its initial projected expenses added up to only $600 million, but the price increased to almost $1.7 billion by 2016, so Congressional hearings had to be held while investigations were carried out. Nothing serious was found in the investigation, just poor management of the project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gained control of the construction management from the VA in 2016. To prevent the costs from getting even further out of control, it removed a $45 million community living center for veterans and a $20 million solar system to power the facility.